JEDDAH: Defending champions of the Saudi Professional League Al-Ittihad crashed to its first defeat when it went down by a solitary goal to Al-Shabab at Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium in Riyadh.
Tareq Al-Tayed scored the only goal of the match in the 36th minute when he placed the ball to the left of the rival goalkeeper from inside the penalty area.
Ittihad strived hard for the equalizer especially after the change of ends pinning Shabab into its own half.
Ittihad had chances to draw level but failed to beat Waleed Abdullah under the Shabab bar.
Despite five minutes added to the extra time, Ittihad failed to even take a point from its rival.
With the win Shabab strengthened its position in second place with 22 points from nine matches while Ittihad kept third spot with 15 points with three matches in hand.
Hamad Al-Muntasheri, Ittihad defender, said that the team did its level best in the match. He said that the league is still in its initial stage and there is penalty of room to make a comeback.
“We should not give the match more than what it deserves. It is just a match and three points lost. We need to focus in the upcoming match against Ahli after Haj on Dec. 4.”
In the other match of the day, Al-Raid and Najran drew 2-2 in Buraidah. Al-Raid remained 11th in the standings with five points and Najran in ninth with seventh points.
The Saudi league will take a Haj break and will resume on Dec. 1.
